Analysts Set Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Target Price at $228.88

Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $228.8750.

DRI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $272.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings cut Darden Restaurants from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total transaction of $1,780,380.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 8,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,799,490. The trade was a 49.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.06, for a total value of $8,181,354.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 86,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,009,682.76. This represents a 31.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 59,768 shares of company stock worth $12,472,786. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 81.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,077,567 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,486,434,000 after purchasing an additional 3,613,781 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 44.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,212,283 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $629,736,000 after purchasing an additional 991,230 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth approximately $144,483,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at $113,301,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 42.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,884,339 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $346,756,000 after purchasing an additional 563,237 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of DRI opened at $203.97 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Darden Restaurants has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $220.65. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $203.74 and its 200-day moving average is $203.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.27 billion, a PE ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.73 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.98 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 11.28 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a $1.62 dividend. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 62.43%.

Key Stories Impacting Darden Restaurants

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with an average price target of $228.88. Deutsche Bank, Guggenheim, Stephens and Bank of America recently raised their price targets, signaling continued confidence in Darden’s longer-term growth prospects. Darden Receives Moderate Buy Recommendation
• Positive Sentiment: Darden’s latest quarterly results showed adjusted earnings of $3.66 per share, ahead of the $3.63 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 13.7% year over year to $3.72 billion. The company also reaffirmed fiscal 2027 earnings guidance of $11.10 to $11.35 per share. Darden Results Analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Darden increased its quarterly dividend to $1.62 from $1.50, bringing the annualized payout to $6.48 and the yield to approximately 3.1%. The higher shareholder return may support the stock’s income appeal. Darden Dividend Increase
• Neutral Sentiment: LongHorn Steakhouse reportedly posted 9.5% sales growth, but Olive Garden lagged, underscoring uneven performance across Darden’s brands. This leaves investors assessing whether higher-growth concepts can offset softness at the company’s largest chain. Darden Brand Performance
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares for approximately $8.2 million after exercising options, reducing his direct holdings by about 31%. CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares worth about $1.8 million, cutting his direct stake nearly in half, while SVP Susan Connelly sold 2,226 shares. The cluster of executive sales is likely weighing on near-term sentiment, although the CEO’s transaction was tied to an option exercise. Darden Insider Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Potential beef-cost inflation and cautious consumer spending remain risks to restaurant margins and traffic, particularly if price increases pressure demand at Olive Garden and other value-oriented concepts. Darden CFO Sale and Beef Inflation

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden’s restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand’s positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.